Microsoft's Neil Thompson has reiterated that the company is focused on making …

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Hoping to alleviate some of the debate surrounding the recently-defeated HD DVD format, Microsoft has brushed aside criticism about wasted resources as a result of the format war, saying that digital downloads have been and continue to be the focus of the company's high-definition media efforts.

Microsoft's Neil Thompson, Senior Regional Director for Microsoft Europe, has gone on the record with his thoughts on the company's current focus:

The horse that we're fundamentally backing is the one that says the future of entertainment content is online digital distribution. I would argue that we backed the right horse... If we're sitting here in 12 or 18 months time, we'll be saying 'why were people even thinking about a disc format when it's really about digital distribution?' Our strategy's been developed for the last six or seven years, and ever since we launched the platform it [online content] has been our big, big, big bet.

We've talked at length about the potential for Microsoft to adopt Blu-ray in the stead of the recently deceased HD DVD format. The general consensus had it that the company really didn't need to do anything; gamers are in it for the gaming and not for high-definition video. The question that remains then is whether or not the same gamers who've casually pushed aside HD DVD and Blu-ray would be willing to pay the premium to fill expensive proprietary hard drives with DRM-clad content.